The packaging of articles such as bottles, cans, and other similar articles in cartons or other containers is a highly automated process, with conventional automated packaging equipment generally being run at high packaging speeds in order to maximize output. In a typical packaging machine for packaging articles such as bottles, cans and the like, articles to be packaged are fed into the packaging machine in a line or series of lines along an infeed conveyor, after which the articles are grouped together in various standard configurations or groupings, such as four, six, eight, twelve, or twenty-four pack configurations. The groups of articles are then packaged into a box, a carton, or other type of container. The placement of the articles within a container can be done in a variety of ways, depending upon the type of package in which the articles are to be placed. For example, the bottoms of cartons can be opened and the cartons then placed over selected groups of articles as the articles are moved along a transport path.
A conventional packaging machine is shown in FIG. 1. The machine functions generally are performed in a line extending through the machine. As shown in FIG. 1, product metering is operated by star wheels at Station 1. At Station 2, product selection blocks separate the product into groups to be loaded into individual cartons. At Station 3, a carousel pick-up selects individual cartons for loading. At Station 4, a carton transport controls the carton through plows and an opening assembly. At Station 5, the carton opener opens the cartons between pairs of vacuum manifold assemblies. At Station 6, the carousel vertically lowers the opened cartons over and onto the product groups. At Station 7, a closing section closes the carton base about the bottle group contained therein and compression is applied on the underside of the discharge belt to secure the carton in a closed position.
Given the high speeds at which the packaging machine is operated, the linear footprint of the machine must be large in order to ensure that the path of travel of the cartons is sufficient to ensure that the cartons are fully opened before being placed over a group of articles. However, plant space often is at a premium and it is not always possible to extend machinery to an optimal size. To prevent jams or misfeeds, the speed at which the articles are packaged must then typically be reduced in order to ensure that the cartons are fully opened prior to packaging the articles therein. Output is accordingly reduced.
Even in cases where the linear extent of the packaging machine is not limited, a large loading carousel necessarily has a large mass of moving parts, which entails a correspondingly large inertia during operation. Drive mechanisms must therefore be larger, and high speed operation of the larger machine may result in higher maintenance costs, higher rates of failure, and other manufacturing problems.
The conventional packaging machine also has a large vertical height. As shown in FIG. 1, cartons are picked up at Station 3 at a raised position and lowered onto the bottles at Station 6. Because the carton pickup and carton loading steps are performed along a line, the height of the carousel must be sufficient to accommodate the highest point of the stroke (i.e., before pickup), and the lowest point of the stroke (i.e., at loading).